Chad Johnson was suspended last night for conduct off the field.  That should come as no surprise to anyone as Johnson is very full of himself.  He even changed his name legally to Chad Ocho Cinco which is pretty darn silly.  Johnson is playing with a bum shoulder this season but maybe he should just shut it down with the season lost for the Bengals.  He has played in 10 games this season and he has only caught 41 passes for 383 yards (9.3 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  That is stunning production for a player who has averaged 88.5 catches, 1,339 yards receiving and 8 TDs over the past six seasons.  Johnson has now played in 118 games for the Bengals in his career and he has caught 600 passes for 8,748 yards (14.6 avg) with 53 TD grabs.  It’s time for the Bengals to get rid of Johnson as they could overlook his antics when he was producing.

The Bengals jumped on the Steelers early in this game when Ryan Fitzpatrick tossed a TD pass to Glenn Holt, but, that just appeared to wake the Steelers up.  Fitzpatrick finished up completing 20 of 37 passes for 168 yards passing with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  Cedric Benson didn’t give Fitzpatrick any help on the ground as he rushed for 35 yards on 16 carries (2.2 ypc).  The Steelers’ defense bottled up T.J. Houshmandzadeh holding him to 4 catches for 20 yards (5.0 avg).  TEs Reggie Kelly (3 rec, 41 yards) and Ben Utecht (3 rec, 36 yards) were the targets of choice for the Bengals in this game.  The Bengals finished up with only 43 yards rushing on 20 carries (2.2 ypc) and they also completed 20 of 37 passes for 165 yards.  The Bengals only had possession of the football for only 24:40 last night and it’s almost impossible to win that way.

The Bengals took some good shots on some Steelers in this game as Chris Crocker (8 tackles) jacked up Santonio Holmes sending him to the sidelines.  Safety Marvin White (9 tackles) and linebacker Brandon Johnson (8 tackles) also had decent games for the Bengals last night.  The Steelers finished up with 121 yards rushing on 37 carries (3.3 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 30 passes for 243 yards.  The Bengals have fallen to 1-9 on the season as it seems that some players have mailed in the year.

Shame on the Bengals for not having a decent backup for Carson Palmer this season.  Where’s Jon Kitna when you really need him?  Ryan Fitzpatrick has played in 6 games for the Bengals this season and he has completed 103 of 166 passes (62%) for 789 yards with 4 TD passes and 6 interceptions.  He doesn’t have much arm strength and he often throws the ball where he shouldn’t when he is pressured.  Fitzpatrick’s best asset is his legs as he is a good runner.  He has carried the football 24 times for 173 yards (7.2 ypc) with 1 TD run.  The Bengals should really think seriously about letting Carson Palmer’s little brother Jordan a chance to show what he can do.  Jordan Palmer has played in 1 game this season for the Bengals and he is 3 for 4 (75%) for 11 yards (77.1 QB Rating).  They have nothing to lose by giving Jordan Palmer a shot as this season is pretty much over for the Bengals.

This game pits the 5-4 Philadelphia Eagles against the 1-8 Cincinnati Bengals.  The Eagles will likely come out throwing the ball against a Bengals’ defense allowing 193.7 yards passing per game.  Look for Donovan McNabb to have a lot of time to throw the ball in this game as the Bengals only have 9 sacks this season.  The Eagles will probably throw the ball deep much more than usual in this football game.  The Bengals allow 138.1 yards rushing per game and 4.2 yards per carry so Brian Westbrook and Correll Buckhalter will likely get there share of carries in this football game.

The Bengals must run the ball effectively this week to have any chance of scoring a upset.  That means Cedric Benson will have to get off against a Eagles’ defense that is only allowing 103.4 yards rushing per game and 3.8 yards per carry.  The Eagles will be bringing the heat against Ryan Fitzpatrick as they already have 28 sacks on the season while the Bengals have allowed 30.  Fitzpatrick gets rattled when he gets hit so look for him to make some big mistakes in this football game.

PREDICTION:  PHILADELPHIA EAGLES 28, CINCINNATI BENGALS 10

The Bengals have lost rookie safety Corey Lynch for the season due to a serious knee injury.  Lynch’s rookie season ends with him playing in 7 games and making 9 tackles, 1 interception and he also defensed a pass.  The Bengals were probably about to let Lynch play some more with there season lost so this is a bad break for him.

The Bengals have signed 28-year old veteran safety Chris Crocker to replace Dexter Jackson on the roster.  Crocker has played in 6 games this season with the Dolphins and he made 10 tackles and defensed 1 pass.  Crocker has now played in 80 games in his NFL career and he has compiled 229 tackles, has 6 sacks, 7 interceptions (one returned for a TD), has defensed 30 passes and forced 2 fumbles.  Crocker will help the depth of the secondary for the Bengals and he could eventually work his way into the starting lineup.  He also should be able to help out some on special teams.

The Bengals have placed veteran safety Dexter Jackson on the Injured Reserve List due to a hamstring injury ending his season.  Jackson season ends with him playing 3 games in which he made 21 tackles and defensed 1 pass.  Nedu Ndukwe will finish out this season starting in place of Jackson.  He has played in 8 games for the Bengals this season and he has made 51 tackles, has 2 sacks, 1 interception and he has defensed 4 passes.  This is a wash for the Bengals as Ndukwe has been playing o.k. for the Bengals this season.

The Bengals built a 21-3 lead after three quarters and then had to hold on for dear life for their first victory of the 2008 season.  The Bengals won this football game because of the lines on both sides of the field.  The Bengals rushed for a stunning 159 yards on 29 carries (5.5 ypc) and on defense they held the Jaguars to 68 yards rushing on 21 carries (3.2 ypc).  Ryan Fitzgerald was solid throwing the ball completing 21 of 31 passes for 162 with 2 TD passes and 1 interception.  He also carried the football 3 times for 52 yards (17.3 ypc).  Cedric Benson had the best game of any running back this season on the Bengals as he rushed for 104 yards on 24 carries (4.3 ypc) with a TD run.  Chad Johnson also finally decided to show up this season with 5 catches for 37 yards (7.4 avg) with 2 TD grabs.

The Jaguars are still reeling after getting beat at home last week by the Cleveland Browns and they will likely take out their frustration on the poor overmatched Bengals tomorrow in Cincinnati.  The Bengals’ defense is pathetic against both the run (146.9 yards rushing per game) and the pass (191.1 yards per game, 96.9 QB Rating).  With that in mind the Jaguars should be able to do whatever they want on offense.  The Bengals only have six sacks this season so David Garrard should have plenty of time to throw the football when he wants to.  He will also be able to take off out of the pocket against a Bengals’ D that will have a hard time matching up with him.  Maurice Jones-Drew and Fred Taylor (if healthy) should do a lot of damage against the Bengals in this game on the ground.

The Jaguars’ D hasn’t played that great this season allowing 338.6 yards per game but the Bengals’ offense might still not be good enough to put up a fight in this game.  Cedric Benson and Chris Perry have both been awful and I have a hard time believing that either of them will have a good game against the Jags.  With that in mind the burden of the offense falls on Ryan Fitzpatrick and the passing game.  That’s bad news for the Bengals as Rashean Mathis will be just waiting to make Fitzpatrick pay for throwing wounded ducks.

PREDICTION:  JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS 34, CINCINNATI BENGALS 10